Infants and other incontinent individuals wear disposable absorbent articles such as diapers to receive and contain urine and other body exudates. Absorbent articles function both to contain the discharged materials and to isolate these materials from the body of the wearer and from the wearer's garments and bed clothing. Disposable absorbent articles having many different basic designs are known to the art.
A typical absorbent article has a chassis that includes a liquid pervious topsheet, and a liquid impervious backsheet joined to the topsheet. An absorbent core is typically positioned between the topsheet and the backsheet. The chassis has a generally elongated shape, which can be rectangular or hourglass shaped. The long dimension of the chassis defines two opposed edges referred to as the longitudinal edges. A portion of each longitudinal edge defines the leg opening of the diaper when worn.
To better contain body exudates, absorbent articles often have elasticized leg openings, referred to as leg cuffs that are designed to fit snugly about the legs of the wearer. Leg cuffs can be made by simply placing tensioned elastic strands along the longitudinal edges, for example. When contracted the elastic strands form gathers of material. Leg cuffs, as opposed to barrier cuffs that are generally disposed inboard, that is, toward the center of the diaper and away from the longitudinal edges of the diaper chassis, can include a portion of the longitudinal edge of the diaper chassis. This longitudinal edge is often unsightly, that is, it appears as an unfinished edge that may have a rather rough appearance. The appearance is important, as consumer perception of softness and comfort are significant considerations for commercial success in the disposable absorbent article field.
In addition to the appearance of leg cuffs in absorbent articles, leg cuffs are relatively costly. In particular, for elasticized leg cuffs, there is a need for elastic in the portion of the longitudinal edge of the chassis that defines the leg opening. However, due to the nature of commercial production of disposable absorbent garments, it is not feasible to apply discrete segments of a material, such as a patch or a strand of elastic material, to a discrete portion of the diaper chassis. For example, it is very difficult to cut a strand of elastic to a length shorter than the long dimension of the chassis and affix it in a predetermined location on the chassis, all at high speed in a repeating manner. For this reason, leg cuff (as well as barrier cuff) elastics are often applied as continuous strands that extend the entire length of the long dimension of the chassis, generally near the longitudinal edges. However, the extra elastic, beyond the portion of the longitudinal edges that define the leg opening, is non-value-added material content.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a disposable absorbent article having a leg cuff that has a finished, comfortable appearance.
Additionally, it would be desirable to have a method for making a leg cuff having a finished appearance in a commercially viable manner.
Further, it would be desirable to have a disposable absorbent article with a leg cuff having a finished appearance, with the finished appearance limited to the portion of the longitudinal edge of the chassis that defines a leg opening when worn.
Finally, it would be desirable to have a commercially-viable method of making a disposable absorbent article with a leg cuff having a finished appearance, with the finished appearance limited to the portion of the longitudinal edge of the chassis that defines a leg opening when worn.